The present invention generally relates to a semiconductor chip communicating with a video signal forwarder or provider for enabling a video display apparatus to display video signals, and particularly to a semiconductor chip communicating with a VGA card for enabling a video display apparatus to display the video signals outputted from the VGA card.
As represented by FIG. 1, a CRT monitor 1 conventionally requires a system to communicate with a VGA card 2 through a bus 3 and a bus 4 in order to perform normal video displaying. The system usually comprises a chip 11 composed of a EEPROM storing DFF data; a chip 13 composed of a first-group-of-data-interface-unit 132 which communicates with VGA card 2 through a bus 4, and an EEPROM 131 storing DDC data accessible by first-group-of-data-interface-unit 132; and a chip 12 which is a MCU (micro control unit) composed of a CPU 121, a ROM 122 storing a program executable by CPU 121, and a logic block 123 communicating with VGA card 2 through bus 3 and directed by CPU 121 to output a signal for enabling the CRT of CRT monitor 1 to display video signals.
Such a conventional system as shown in FIG. 1 requires 3 semiconductor chips 11, 12, and 13, resulting in need of complicate interfacing and relatively sophisticated design, and leading to higher likelihood of facing difficulties and problems when proceeding mass production. Another disadvantage of such a conventional system is that its size can not be easily reduced to cope with the trend of minimizing the size of a display system, especially a portable system.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to configure a system on a single semiconductor chip so that the 3 semiconductor chips which conventionally serve as essential elements for a monitor can be substituted by a system built in a single semiconductor chip, thereby lower cost, easier design, simpler mass production, relatively high operating speed, as well as less manufacturing failure rate can be realized.
It must be noted that the semiconductor chip suggested by the present invention is not limited to the application in the field of CRT monitor. Actually it can be applied to any type of display system.
The configuration of a system-on-chip according to the present invention is characterized by storing main program, DDC (display data channel) data, and DFF (display frame frequency) data together in a storage circuit such as a REPROM, and by a novel arrangement of connection between its storage circuit and its operating circuits such as a CPU, an interface unit, or a logic block.
A first aspect of the present invention may be represented by a semiconductor chip which communicates with a video signal provider for enabling a video display apparatus to display a video signal provided by the video signal provider, and which comprises:
storage means for storing a program (computer program, or a group of executable commands, for example), a first group of data such as DDC (display data channel) data, and a second group of data such as DFF (display frame frequency) data; and
operating means, for responding to a data request signal received from the video signal provider, to read the first group of data and send the read first group of data to the video signal provider, and for responding to a data-match signal received from the video signal provider to detect a data mode of the data-match signal and to read, according to the detected data mode, a corresponding part of second group of data from among the second group of data, and for adapting, according to the program, the corresponding part of second group of data for being received by the video display apparatus to enable the video display apparatus to display the video signal provided by the video signal provider or its associated device.
The adapting of the corresponding part of second group of data by the operating means according to the program may mean that the program is accessed and executed by the operating means and the operating means is directed thereafter by the program execution to adapt the corresponding part of second group of data for being received by the video display apparatus to enable the video display apparatus to display the video signal provided by the video signal provider or its associated device, i.e., the corresponding part of second group of data is so adapted, according to the program, as to be in a level or a type receivable by the video display apparatus and capable of enabling the video display apparatus to display the video signal provided by the video signal provider or its associated device.
The video signal (such as RGB components) provided by the video signal provider or its associated device is not necessarily inputted to the semiconductor chip, it can be applied directly to the video display apparatus and is displayed as a result that the video display apparatus had been properly enabled by the adapted corresponding part of second group of data supplied by the semiconductor chip.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the video signal provider may be a computer, a video recorder output device, or any apparatus having video data to be outputted for displaying, and the semiconductor chip may be installed in a monitor and connected to a display control circuit of the video display apparatus in the monitor through a signal channel. Conventionally the display control circuit controls the displaying of video display apparatus according to the signals outputted from the system composed of 3 semiconductor chips shown in FIG. 1. Similarly, according to the present invention, the display control circuit controls the displaying of video display apparatus according to the adapted corresponding part of second group of data outputted from the operating means of the single semiconductor chip provided by the present invention. The storage means may be any type of memory capable of storing data accessible by the operating means. The data request signal is sent to the operating means for requesting the operating means to read the first group of data and send the read first group of data to the video signal provider, thereby the specification of the monitor expected to display the video signal provided by the video signal provider (or its associated system) can be recognized by the video signal provider, whereby the video signal can be provided in a mode corresponding to the specification of the monitor. The corresponding part of second group of data above is the data which is a part of the second group of data and which corresponds to the data mode of the data-match signal, wherein the data-match signal may be a synchronous signal such as a vertical synchronous signal or a horizontal synchronous signal or the combination of the both. The corresponding part of second group of data is not always receivable by the video display apparatus or capable of enabling the video display apparatus to display the video signal provided by the video signal provider, therefore it usually has to be adapted according to a program.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the semiconductor chip may further comprise a communication channel between the operating means and the storage means for the operating means to read the first group of data, the second group of data, and to access the program. Specifically the operating means according to the present invention may comprise a first-group-of-data-interface-unit for receiving the data request signal and sending the read first group of data to the video signal provider, and the single chip according to the present invention may also comprise a DDC-communication-channel particularly for the first-group-of-data-interface-unit to access the first group of data therethrough.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the storage means may comprise two storage parts, either physically connected or completely independent of each other, with the first storage part storing the first group of data accessible by the first-group-of-data-interface-unit through the DDC-communication-channel, and the second storage part storing the program and the second group of data both accessible by the operating means through the communication channel.
A second aspect of the present invention may be represented by a semiconductor chip which communicates with a video signal forwarder for enabling a video display apparatus to display a video signal outputted from the video signal forwarder (or its associated apparatus), and which comprises:
operating means; and
storage means for storing a program (computer program, or a group of executable commands, for example), a first group of data, and a second group of data, all accessible by the operating means;
the operating means responsive to a data request signal applied thereto (may be outputted by the video signal forwarder or any device affiliated therewith or controlled by it) for forwarding the first group of data from the storage means to the video signal provider, and responsive to a data-match signal received from the video signal forwarder for detecting a data mode of the data-match signal to read, according to the detected data mode, a corresponding part of second group of data from among the second group of data, and directed by the program to adapt the corresponding part of second group of data for being received by the video display apparatus to enable the video display apparatus to display the video signal outputted from the video signal forwarder or any system associated with or controlled by the video signal forwarder.
The video signal forwarder may be a computer system, an internet interface, or any apparatus capable of receiving, buffering, or adapting signals for outputting to a display apparatus for displaying.
A third aspect of the present invention may be represented by a semiconductor chip comprising the following elements for communicating with a video signal forwarder for enabling a video display apparatus to display a video signal outputted from the video signal forwarder,
a first-group-of-data-interface-unit;
a logic processing unit;
first storage means for storing a first group of data accessible by the first-group-of-data-interface-unit;
second storage means for storing a program and a second group of data all accessible by the logic processing means;
the first-group-of-data-interface-unit responsive to a data request signal applied thereto (may be outputted by the video signal forwarder, or any device controlled by the video signal forwarder, or any system affiliated with the video signal forwarder) for reading the first group of data and sending the read first group of data to the video signal forwarder, the logic processing unit responsive to a data-match signal received from the video signal forwarder for detecting a data mode of the data-match signal to read, according to the detected data mode, a corresponding part of second group of data from among the second group of data, and directed by the program to adapt the corresponding part of second group of data for being received by the video display apparatus to enable the video display apparatus to display the video signal outputted from the video signal forwarder.